The children of model Kim Porter and embattled mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs are blasting a purported memoir attributed to their late mother that describes Combs in explicit sexual escapades with celebrities and includes allegations of abuse against Porter, who died in 2018.
“Kim’s Lost Words: A Journey for Justice, From the Other Side…” was recently published on Amazon “by Jamal T. Millwood for Kimberly A. Porter.” Millwood was later revealed to be author and investigative journalist Chris Todd, who, under his pen name, alleged in the book’s prologue that one of Porter’s last wishes was for “this memoir/diary to be made public.” But even he was skeptical about the alleged entries’ authenticity — more on that later.
In a joint statement posted Tuesday on Instagram, Porter’s four children said they felt compelled to speak out after seeing the “many hurtful and false rumors” about their parents and their parents’ relationship.
“Claims that our mom wrote a book are simply untrue. She did not,” said Porter’s sons Quincy, 33, whom she had with musician Al B. Sure!; Combs’ son Christian, 26; and twin daughters Jessie and D’Lila, 17.
“And anyone claiming to have a manuscript is misrepresenting themselves,” they said. “Additionally, please understand that any so-called ‘friend’ speaking on behalf of our mom or her family is not a friend. Nor do they have her best interests at heart.”
Combs’ attorney Erica Wolf has also described the book as”fake,” “offensive” and “a shameless attempt to profit from tragedy.” Porter’s family is “exploring” legal action, People said.
The book — whose 58-page sample is riddled with typos and other issues — climbed to the No. 1 spot on the platform’s Literature & Fiction list this week, People and Rolling Stone reported, after Combs was indicted last week on sex trafficking, racketeering and prostitution-related charges. As of Wednesday morning, it was in the No. 7 spot on the platform’s 20 Most Sold & Most Read Books of the week.
Incidentally, the author’s pen name has its own lore: Conspiracy theorists believe Jamal T. Millwood is an alias used by slain rapper Tupac Shakur — who was signed by Death Row Records, a rival of Combs’ Bad Boy Records — who is also named in the book. Shakur was killed in 1996, and some believe that Diddy was connected to the shooting death despite another man being charged in the slaying last year. Combs has vehemently denied involvement.
But, as Rolling Stone reported Tuesday, the book was self-published by Todd Christopher Guzze — who also goes by Chris Todd. Todd told the outlet that he is a producer, author and investigative journalist who was given the alleged memoir — after Combs’ ex Casandra “Cassie” Ventura sued him in November — by two people who said they were close to Porter and Combs. He also said he can’t be sure if what’s written in the source material is true.
“If somebody put my feet to the fire and they said, ‘Life or death, is that book real?’ I have to say I don’t know. But it’s real enough to me,” the author said. “Sometimes you have to just put it out there. Maybe not 100% of the book is true, but maybe 80% is. That is to get those people to come forward and either corroborate or deny [the claims], and that helps me as an investigator to know the truth.”
Porter’s best friends Kimora Lee Simmons and Lawanda Lane told Rolling Stone that they don’t know the author and that “every page in that book is false.” They also appeared to cast doubt on whether Porter was working on a memoir before she died, saying she was “extremely private.”
In their statement, the children of Combs and Porter did not address the increased scrutiny around their father since the March raids of the hip-hop mogul’s homes and last week’s federal indictment. (Combs, who remains in custody in a New York jail, has pleaded not guilty to the charges; his attorney has described him as innocent.) Instead, the children reflected on their mother’s death and tried to shut down speculation surrounding it, such as allegations made in the book’s prologue about foul play and poisoning.
Porter, who dated Combs on and off for about 13 years, died in November 2018 after being found unresponsive at her San Fernando Valley residence. After an autopsy, the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner announced in January 2019 that that the 47-year-old’s cause of death was due to lobar pneumonia and her manner of death was certified as natural.
“Our lives were shattered when we lost our mother. She was our world. And nothing has been the same since she passed. While it has been incredibly difficult to reconcile how she could be taken from us so soon, the cause of her death has long been established. There was no foul play. Grief is a lifelong process. And we ask that everyone respect our request for peace as we continue to cope with her loss every day,” they said.
“We are deeply saddened that the world has made a spectacle of what has been the most tragic event of our lives. Our mother should be remembered for the beautiful, strong, kind, and loving woman she was. Her memory should not be tainted by horrific conspiracy theories,” the statement continued.
The children asked followers to respect their mother and “hold her legacy in high regard so that she may rest in peace.”
However, in the wake of Combs’ arrest, questions about Combs and anyone in his orbit have run rampant. Last week, Quincy’s father Al B. Sure! — who is discussed in the book — called for a renewed investigation into Porter’s death and summarized “Kim’s Lost Words” as “calculated fiction.”
“Unfortunately, Kimberlina was taken from us way [too] soon and before she could complete her true thoughts before this FAKE Unauthorized EDIT released on AMAZON which the disappearance of her computer and vital evidence raises significantly more questions,” the R&B hitmaker wrote in a series of Instagram posts, making additional allegations about Combs.
“It is evident that her potential to expose the realities of her personal abuses, being drugged, the #SexTrafficking and #HumanTrafficking she was privy to, akin to the brave actions of Mrs. Cassie Ventura, posed a threat to those profiting from such heinous activities,” he wrote. “In a nutshell, Kimberly was allegedly taken from us because she was set on course to accomplish what Mrs. Cassie Ventura did by [igniting] the Bon Fire [sic] which brings us here today with the avalanche that has brought Satin [sic] to their chambers.”
After many lawsuits were filed against Combs since Ventura catalyzed his public downfall in November, Combs’ former bodyguard alleged in a May interview that the disgraced music producer was repeatedly “physical” with both Ventura and Porter.
